Moving On
by AnimeFan202
Summary: It's been almost a year since Sandy betrayed Soda. Evie and Steve think Soda needs to find a new girlfriend. And Evie has the perfect candidate. Third story in future generation series.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

Leah sighed and closed her math book. It didn't matter what school she went to. None of this ever made sense.

Leah picked up the rest of her new math books, all beat up, and stepped out of her first class for the day. She was the last one out. As she left she glanced back at her math teacher. He was preoccupied with something on his desk. The closest he'd come to welcoming her to the school had been to make her stand in front of the class and introduce herself. Leah didn't throw a goodbye over her shoulder. She'd already decided she didn't like him.

Leah could hear her mother's 'advice' in her head. _Be especially nice to the people you can't stand, or the ones who can't stand you. It drives them crazy. _Her mother was the queen of getting under people's skin. But Leah didn't listen to her mother's advice. Mr. Plummer would probably think she was trying to be friendly. And besides, at the moment, her mother was in no position to be giving anyone advice.

The first thing Leah saw when she stepped out into the bustling hallway was Mr. Ayres, the principal. He had escorted her to her first class. Mr. Ayres was tall and thin and the hair that he still had was gray. He also had watery blue eyes and a smile that made you doubt whether he could be strict enough to handle being the principal of a high school.

The second thing she noticed was that there was a girl standing next to him. The girl was fairly short, shorter than Leah anyway. There was a bright blue barrette in her hair that was the exact color of her eyes. Some might say this complimented her, and maybe it did; Leah was no expert when it came to style, but Leah found this a bit creepy. In her mind, it made this girl look more like a doll than a human being. Her tan hair reached right down to the middle of her back and stopped there in a straight line.

Leah's own hair was the color of mud with eyes the color of dirt. Her hair was a bit longer than the girl's in front of her and wavier. This would be a gift to some, but Leah had never paid much attention to her looks.

The third thing she noticed, and perhaps the one that creeped her out the most, was that they were both beaming at her like idiots. Leah made a weak attempt at smiling back.

"Did you have a good first class, Miss Cooper?"

Leah hesitated. Was any math class ever good? But it didn't matter because Mr. Ayres didn't wait for her to answer.

"I've found someone to help you find your way." he continued.

Leah's attention shifted once more to the girl. She looked familiar. She was in her math class. What was her name? Ellie?

"This is Evangeline Collins." Evangeline... it must've been Evie then, not Ellie.

"Hi." Leah said.

"Nice to meet you." said Evie.

"Miss Cooper has volunteered to show you from class to class."

It was at this time that Mr. Plummer spotted them. "Oh, Evie, I meant to speak with you." He glanced at the principal. "Unless you're busy..."

Mr. Ayres sent his smile Mr. Plummer's way. "Of course not! I'd actually like to talk to Leah alone for a moment anyway."

"Oh. Okay. Good."

Evie closed the door behind her, looking none too thrilled. Leah could already tell that she and this girl shared a common hatred.

Mr. Ayres lowered his voice even though Evie was now at Mr. Plummer's desk and had shut the door behind her. "Now, Miss Cooper, I'm hoping this will benefit the both of you. Miss Collins's friend... well, moved away recently for lack of a better way to put it."

For lack of a better way to put it? Then Leah's mind jumped to what he meant. She needed a guide and in return, Evie needed a new best friend. _Yippee._ she thought sarcastically.

Mr. Ayres patted her on the shoulder as Evie came out and closed the door behind her once more. Then, he said goodbye to us and left.

Evie turned to me and smiled once more. Leah wondered if she knew that the principal was trying to set her up with a new friend. "I'm Evie."

"Leah."

"Let's go. We have English next."

Leah sighed. She didn't like English, but at least it was better than math.

**Review Please!**

**This is Sodapop's story for those of you who have yet to pick up on it. It was kind of short, even for a first chapter, but I kind of like it. Yes, the whole thing that happened with Sandy and Soda will be a heavy topic in this story. Also, it won't show up much, but the Dally+Sylvia=Lynn thing will probably be mentioned even though this is Soda's story.**

**I don't own the Outsiders.**


	2. Chapter 2

**I would like to thank alsonny and ILuvJohnnyCade for reviewing the first chapter! I'm also incredibly grateful that your names are easy to spell and I didn't have to go back to the reviews page to look it up twenty times.**

**Chapter Two**

Leah watched as Evie expertly wove her way through the crowd that had appeared immediately after the principal had turned the corner. Evie was used to it; Leah's last school hadn't been half the size of this one.

She glanced at the rest of the students making up the crowd. There were a few girls in front of her. It wouldn't surprise her if they went everywhere together. It wasn't uncommon for high school girls to stick to each other. Normally it annoyed the hell out of Leah. At least right now she had an excuse to be following Evie around.

The other thing she noticed about these girls was that they were some of the better dressed. They must've been the rich kids. They all had plaid skirts and bright tops. Evie was dressed quite brightly as well, but her clothes didn't scream look at me! like their's did. And Evie's didn't seem to have the same sort of shine.

Leah had never been self-conscious and for the first time in a while she actually looked down to see what she'd thrown together this morning. She had on a dark short-sleeved t-shirt and black converse. It was one of the rare days that she wore a skirt and not a pair of ratty old jeans. That too was black. Leah couldn't remember exactly when she'd started wearing all black. But there'd come a time where the things in her closet had started fading. The dark blues, purples, and greens disappeared to be replaced with black. It wasn't void of all color, but it might as well have been. She didn't go overboard or anything. Leah hadn't died her hair black and she didn't wear any dark make-up, or any make-up at all for that matter.

English was better. A bit boring, but not that bad. It was lunch that was interesting.

She and Evie sat with one other girl at a table. A blond names Kathy. Kathy was one of those people who was so pretty she stood out without even trying. Sky blue eyes and perfectly blond, Kathy reminded Leah a bit of Cinderella, except without all the dorkiness that accompanies being a Disney princess. She had a superiority that wasn't at all uppity and, though she was wearing a skirt and this was only the first time she'd seen her, Leah could already tell that Kathy was the type of girl that could make a pair of old ripped jeans and a dirty t-shirt look sexy.

The cafeteria food wasn't great, but just like math class being boring, this Leah had been expected.

Evie and Kathy had one main subject: boys. Not surprising. Most girls Leah knew were infatuated with them. But the difference with these two was that they were gushing over boys they'd already claimed. _What was the point at staring at your boyfriend from a distance? _wondered Leah. _Couldn't they just go over and talk to them? _

Not that Leah wanted to spend each lunch period with her two new friends all over their men, but it just made more sense.

The two they were ogling at didn't eat lunch in the cafeteria. They sat on the back of an old car. Both had their hair greased back.

Leah had seen quite a few greasers in the hallway, usually causing trouble, but the cafeteria was rid of them. Looking around she noticed that most of them were eating outside.

The taller one's smile hadn't disappeared once since they'd started looking at them. Leah quickly picked up that this one was Kathy's boyfriend. She thought she heard the name Two-bit thrown into the conversation, but she couldn't be sure.

The other was named Steve. This she knew for sure since Evie seemed unable to go ten minutes without saying his name. Steve was a bit shorter with bigger muscles and tanner skin.

There were two other boys sitting with them, but they were going unnoticed by Kathy and Evie.

One was even tanner than Steve. His hair was falling into his eyes, Leah could see that even from a distance. The other one had his back to the girls. They were both small for high school.

Soon the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch. As the boys came back inside Leah figured that Kathy and Evie would go up to talk to them, but instead the two scurried back into the hallway. Leah had zero experience with dating, but this seemed a little senseless to her.

The next day was very much the same. Evie must have officially crowned Leah as her friend because she still followed her around everywhere.

The only difference was that afternoon.

"Are you doing anything after school today?" Evie asked as soon as the final bell rang.

"Not that I know of."

"Good. Come with me to the DX down the street today." Evie smiled, Leah was a bit confused. A gas station? _Exciting. _she thought sarcastically.

It wasn't until the DX was in sight that Evie told Leah what she'd really meant.

"There's someone I want you to meet."

_Oh boy. _Leah could already smell the set up.

The two of them were still across the street when Steve came out. He must've just started his shift. Someone came out after Steve. He too had his hair greased back. Steve was usually scowling, and this boy's smile was a nice contrast to that. Leah could tell even from a distance that this boy was incredibly handsome.

And here was where Leah credited herself in being different from other girls. This boy was sure to have a fanclub and high school girls flocking around him all the time. This boy seemed young enough to still be in high school himself, but she hadn't seen him around school. Anyway, while most girls would be swooning right about now, Leah Cooper felt absolutely nothing.

"That," said Evie with a gesture at him "is Sodapop Curtis."

Leah wasn't as amazed as she was sure Evie had hoped she'd be. "Sodapop? Any relation to Ponyboy?"

Evie looked surprised. "Yeah, Pony's his little brother. How do you know him?"

"I heard his name over the announcements this morning. He won something at some track meet."

Evie dismissed this easily. "Yeah, Ponyboy's always winning something. So, do you want to meet him?"

_Not really. _"Why not," Leah said with a sigh.

She wondered what Evie saw that she didn't. Because from past experience, the golden heartthrob usually wanted nothing to do with the gothic newcomer. And in this situation, the feeling was mutual.

**Review please!**

**It must be pretty obvious, but the feeling is not as mutual as Leah would like to think. I think we all know Sodapop better than that. ^^**

**I don't own the Outsiders!**

**I know this is sort of random, but usually a song accompanies the idea for a story in my head. Sort of like a theme song. This story's song is Sweet Thing by Keith Urban. (Which I do not own.) **


	3. Chapter 3

**Thanks to dctwi-fan, xlivilightx, Pearl Primrose, Queen Lucy of Awesomeness, johnnycadexXxkaratekid, and la route de l'enfer for reviewing chapter two!**

**I start school again tomorrow ( :( ) so I'm trying to get something done on my fanfics now. **

**Chapter Three**

Grudgingly, Leah followed Evie across the street to where her boyfriend and his friend awaited. Leah stayed a few feet away while Evie walked right up to Steve's side. Unlike in the lunch room earlier that day, now there was no doubt who was his girl.

"Leah, this is Soda. Soda, this is Leah. She's new here."

Soda hadn't stopped smiling, but Leah shook the hand he'd just wiped on a rag with a guarded expression.

"Nice to meet you, Leah. I'm Sodapop."

So I've heard, she resisted saying.

He gestured towards the building behind them. "I work here." Another obvious statement.

They were all waiting for her to continue so, knowing well that she was being very rude, Leah said, "I'm Leah, and I'm not good with first impressions."

She just barely caught Soda's confused look as she turned around and began to walk away.

"Where are you going?" Evie called after her.

"Home!" Leah called back. She vaguely heard something called back about a ride home, but Leah ignored it. She lived close enough from here anyway. And, just as she'd predicted, she made it home without incident.

Her dad's car was in the driveway; that meant he was already home. Leah almost ran up the steps, suddenly feeling more elated than she had in quite a while. Today was finally over!

"I'm home, Dad!" she shouted as she slammed the door behind her.

"In here, sweetheart!" he called back. The only thing in the back of the house was her room... oh no.

She hurried past the kitchen. Sure enough, when she peeked her head around the door to her room, she found her dad sitting on her floor. In front of him was a box that she clearly hadn't hidden well enough.

"Where'd you find that?" she asked halfheartedly.

He beamed at her. "In the back of your closet. I was searching through all the closets because so much got lost when we moved."

It was true. Leah hadn't looked around when she'd come in because the house wasn't a pretty sight. Almost every surface in their living room and kitchen was covered in boxes or random junk from the boxes that they hadn't found a place to put. Leah didn't see the point in having moved all the furniture into the house yet since they could hardly see any of it.

In the box in front of her father were all of her old skirts. The ones at the bottom were even brightly colored.

Her dad must've noticed her expression because he said, "Honey, I know you don't like them very much, but it isn't proper for a girl to wear pants to school."

"I know." She knew this. How could she not? She couldn't exactly count on one hand how many times they'd had this conversation.

Her dad smiled and took this as they'd come to an agreement. Which, Leah supposed they had. She would wear a skirt for the rest of the year like a good girl and she wouldn't cause any trouble. She lay on her back on her bed and looked up at her ceiling.

The whole house was a bit run-down, but she loved it. The roof needed fixing in places, but so far it hadn't been a problem.

Her room was sort of small and the walls were a grayish white. The floor was an ugly tan carpet, but she felt no motivation to push her father into letting her redecorate. Like she did with everything, she'd deal.

...

The confrontation at lunch was to be expected. As soon as she sat down with her tray Evie snapped, "What happened yesterday? That was really rude!"

"I know." Leah responded nonchalantly, taking a bite of the school's pasta. Rubbery... yum.

Evie quietly stewed for a minute. She didn't touch her lunch. _Good move._ thought Leah. Then, she stood and went outside to sit with Steve.

Leah watched her silently. The table was silent until Kathy spoke. "Don't mind her none. That girl, she's got a bit of a temper herself."

"I wondered how she put up with Steve."

Kathy laughed. "Yeah, those two were made for each other. But listen, I know what Evie did was wrong, but give Sodapop a chance. You ain't gotta fall in love with the boy, but he can be real sweet and things have been hard for him lately."

Leah remained silent.

...

After just a few days school was settling into a routine for Leah. There was just one thing she truly dreaded. The principal had set her up to see the guidance counselor once a week. It was only her first session, but she already hated it.

Before Leah had even had a chance to get a word in, the man had been trying to make her see sense. Leah wondered what he knew. Or, what he thought he knew. Mr. Rooker had been given the details, but he didn't know Leah.

"Look." she butt in halfway through their session. "I know there are people out there who have it harder than me. I'm sure it really sucks for them. But that doesn't make my problems any easier."

Leah got up and left the room. Mr. Rooker didn't even try to stop her. Good. Leah had no plans of returning.

Her next class, lunch, wouldn't start for another half hour. Almost as soon as she stepped out of the room she saw a boy waiting outside the office, clearly in trouble, but he didn't seem bothered that he was waiting for the principal to see him.

He smiled at her and Leah recognized him as one of the boys who sat outside with Steve for lunch.

Leah resisted grimacing. His smile was as good as calling her over. She sighed and walked toward her.

"Hey." he said.

"Yes?" she said pointedly.

"You're Evie's new friend, right?" She nodded. "Pleased to meet you. I'm Two-bit Mathews." His voice was like an imitation of someone very articulate.

Sodapop, Ponyboy, and now Two-bit? What was wrong with everyone in this town?

"Leah." Did he ever stop smiling?

"I heard about what happened at the gas station." Hasn't everybody? She almost rolled her eyes.

"And?"

"Why don't you give him another chance?"

"You're joking." Was the whole world conspiring against her?

"Nope. Not this time." He snatched her math notebook out of her hands. She kept a pen in the binding. He flipped to an empty page and scribbled down an address.

Leah took it back a bit cautiously. His handwriting was awful, but she could read it. It wasn't that far from her own house.

Before either of them could say anything else the boy was called into the principal's office. Leah noted that he was called in by the name Keith. She also noted how a grimace replaced the smile when he heard his name.

Leah didn't mention anything to Evie or Kathy about her conversation with Two-bit.

And, surprising herself, she went down the street that night in the direction of the Curtis household. She had no intention of going inside to spend time with them. The idea was laughable.

But she did watch the house for a few minutes. She'd just turned away to walk back home when she noticed that there was someone standing practically right next to her. He had white-blond hair and was smoking a cigarette.

He smirked at her. "Lose your nerve, girly?"

"What? no." He'd surprised her, but she wasn't about to let him see that he scared her as well.

"Really." he took a step forward. "Coulda fooled me."

Leah was about to instinctively take a step backward when a small tan hand grabbed his elbow. "Dallas..." the boy Leah hadn't noticed said quietly. She hardly heard him, but Dallas did.

Leah's first instinct was to warn the small boy to high tail it out of there, but to her surprise Dallas didn't come any closer. He threw his cigarette butt on the ground and, with his hands in his pockets he walked across the street to the very house Leah had been staring at, cool as could be.

The boy, who she now recognized as one of the younger ones who spent his lunchtime with Two-bit and Steve, looked back at her with a small smile, then followed Dallas.

Leah shook her head and started home.

What a weird town...

**Review please!**

**I don't own the Outsiders!**


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